                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

SCOPE OF PRACTICE, SUPERVISION, AND QUALIFICATIONS OF QUALIFIED MENTAL HEALTH
PROFESSIONAL-TRAINEES (§ 54.1-3521)

A. A qualified mental health professional-trainee shall be qualified to perform,
under Board-approved supervision, collaborative behavioral health services,
including the supportive functions of (i) screening; (ii) intake; (iii)
orientation; (iv) care coordination; (v) client education; (vi) referral
activities; (vii) initiating crisis de-escalation; (viii) gathering histories of
mental and physical health conditions, alcohol and drug use, past mental health
treatment, and interactions with the criminal justice system; (ix) providing
psychosocial skills development; (x) implementing interventions as assigned on
individual plans of care and documenting the interventions for the purposes of
recordkeeping; and (xi) prevention of mental health and substance use disorders.
A registered qualified mental health professional-trainee shall not engage in
independent or autonomous practice and shall only perform collaborative
behavioral health services.

B. Such registered qualified mental health professional-trainees shall be
supervised by a mental health professional licensed by the Department of Health
Professions who has completed the required supervisor training, a person under
supervision that has been approved by the Board of Counseling, Board of
Psychology, or Board of Social Work as a prerequisite for licensure and who has
completed the required supervisor training, or a registered qualified mental
health professional who has practiced for three years and completed the required
supervisor training.

C. Pursuant to regulations adopted by the Board, an applicant for registration
as a qualified mental health professional-trainee shall submit evidence
satisfactory to the Board that the applicant has (i) completed a specified
number of hours of didactic education in a program or programs recognized or
approved by the Board and (ii) received, at a minimum, a bachelor&#8217;s degree
from an institution of higher education accredited by an accrediting agency
recognized by the Board or is actively enrolled and in good standing in a
bachelor&#8217;s degree program from an institution of higher education
accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the Board.

HISTORY: 2024, c. 595.